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LiteratureArticle Details
PMID: 22048313
Published · epublish
English
Comparative Study
Historical Article
Journal Article
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.
Species-specific responses of Late Quaternary megafauna to climate and humans.
Abstract
Despite decades of research, the roles of climate and humans in driving the dramatic extinctions of large-bodied mammals during the Late Quaternary period remain contentious. Here we use ancient DNA, species distribution models and the human fossil record to elucidate how climate and humans shaped the demographic history of woolly rhinoceros, woolly mammoth, wild horse, reindeer, bison and musk ox. We show that climate has been a major driver of population change over the past 50,000 years. However, each species responds differently to the effects of climatic shifts, habitat redistribution and human encroachment. Although climate change alone can explain the extinction of some species, such as Eurasian musk ox and woolly rhinoceros, a combination of climatic and anthropogenic effects appears to be responsible for the extinction of others, including Eurasian steppe bison and wild horse. We find no genetic signature or any distinctive range dynamics distinguishing extinct from surviving species, emphasizing the challenges associated with predicting future responses of extant mammals to climate and human-mediated habitat change.
MeSH Terms
Animals
Bayes Theorem
Biota
Bison
Climate Change/history
DNA, Mitochondrial/analysis,genetics
Europe
Extinction, Biological
Fossils
Genetic Variation
Geography
History, Ancient
Horses
Human Activities/history
Humans
Mammals/genetics,physiology
Mammoths
Molecular Sequence Data
Population Dynamics
Reindeer
Siberia
Species Specificity
Time Factors
Chemicals
DNA, Mitochondrial
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Article Info
Journal
Nature
Abbr.
Nature
ISSN
1476-4687
Published
2011-11-02
Epub
2011-00-02
Pages
359-64
Language
English
Region
England
NLM ID
0410462
PMCID
PMC4070744
Subset
IM
Grants
NHGRI NIH HHS · R01 HG003229 · United States
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